The following infographic reveals very disturbing aspect of out modern technological society— the problem of over-medication and too great a reliance on medication. The infographic deals with the North American situation but the insights can relevant to many other countries, including South Africa, .

Among the alarming insights that this infographic provides is the fact that :

Many prescribed medications has little or no benefit.

Many antidepressants are little more and placebos.

Many people, especially women, are prone to take medication than in the past.

More than 85 percent of new drugs on the market has been shown to have little or no benefit.

Therapy has been shown to much more effective than medication in cases of anxiety and depression.

Another aspect of this problem is the increasing number of people who are becoming addicted to over-the-counter medication. As one report states: “Tens of thousands of “ordinary” South Africans are addicted to over-the-counter painkillers and sedatives like Codis, Stopayne, Nurofen-Plus and Valium.” (http://www.iol.co.za/news/south-africa/over-the-counter-drugs-abuse-rife-363212) More recently, codeine in common medications as become a serious problem: “While no reliable statistics exist for codeine abuse in South Africa, it has become common enough that theMedical Research Council (MRC) is considering recommending that medications containing it be harder to buy. The MRC says over-the-counter and prescription pills are to blame for up to 20 percent of cases of drug abuse in South Africa.” (Codeine: SA’s over-the-counter addiction)

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